VBS on a Mission
Your church does it every summer: tired parents look forward to it, kids can’t wait for it, and youth workers and volunteers pour their hearts into it…it’s Vacation Bible School! And what a powerful time it can be as kids invite their friends and learn how to love and follow God with their entire life. What if your VBS not only made a life-changing impact on the kids in your church and neighborhood but also provided life transformation for kids on the other side of the world? Welcome to VBS on a Mission!
As your VBS goes on a global mission, your kids will gain an understanding of God’s heart for them and also God’s heart for children in Africa: children who are suffering without parents, food, and education. Your students will learn about God’s children in D.R. Congo and be able to tangibly connect to those kids by raising money for them throughout the week. They will gain the opportunity to make new friends on the other side of the world and make a mighty impact in God’s Kingdom. Bring them on a life-changing safari that will forever change them and the children they reach out to.
Getting Started
Gospel Light Curriculum: The 2009 Gospel Light “Kingdom of the Son” curriculum is centered on an African Safari theme. It provides a perfect link to connect your kids with the children we are caring for in Africa. Find out if your church is planning to use this curriculum! If they haven’t decided on a curriculum yet, highly suggest this one!
The School in D.R. Congo: We want to connect your kids directly to the ELI Christian Academy in the slums of Bukavu, DR Congo. The school is reaching over 600 children from elementary through high school and shines as a bright beacon of hope amidst the darkness and suffering of the slum. Many of the children who attend lost their parents to the civil war and have been living on the streets or with relatives. Because of God’s love for them shown through the work of ELI, they are gaining new hope as the school provides them with an education, lunch (the only meal that many of them receive during the day), clothing, basic health care, and good news about the love of God. We invite your kids to raise money that will help us to continue to provide this life-changing hope to this slum.
Get the leadership on Board: Share the idea with the heads of your church’s Children’s Department. Ask them if this is something they would be willing to incorporate into their VBS. Have them contact getinvolved@empoweringlives.org or 909.931.1311 with any questions they have. We would love to talk with them to figure out how we can make this work for their specific VBS program.
Coordinate with ELI: Once your church is on board, send us the dates and details for your VBS. We will send you a DVD with footage of the kids we care for in Africa, and other information that shares about the children your kids will be helping. We will put your date on our calendar and will try to arrange for one of our staff to attend to share with the kids and help them personally connect to the children in Africa.
Plan the VBS: Work with your children’s staff to plan how you want to incorporate the ELI challenge into your curriculum. It should be easy if you are using the Gospel Light Curriculum. But even if you are using a different curriculum, you can think of fun and creative ways to weave the African kids into the program. Contact our office to brainstorm and talk about ideas other churches are using!
Ideas for the VBS
5-Day Challenge: Introduce your kids to the students in DR Congo. Use the DVD, ELI information, or an ELI staff member. Share with the kids that they will be learning about these children all week and will have an opportunity to provide food, clothing, education, health care, and the love of God for them. Share the 5-day challenge to raise as much as money as possible throughout the week. Challenge them to get creative, do extra chores around the house or neighborhood, sacrifice luxury items, etc. Every dime they raise will provide for one meal for a child at our school. It’s great to set a goal for the group to try to meet!
Africa Map Thermometer: Put up a big map of Africa and color in more and more of the continent as the students bring in their change and get closer to their goal. The map serves as a thermometer showing the students how close they are to their goal. Update the map each day!
Ishara’s Journey: Let us know if you would like one of our staff members to come at the beginning of the week to take your kids through Ishara’s Journey: a 30-45 minute interactive presentation that takes your students through the real life journey of a 14-year-old girl named Ishara in DR Congo. They will experience life through her eyes as they are presented with the decisions that she has been forced to make and then live out the consequences. The students will raise their hands to vote on the options given to them and the story will unfold based on the decisions they make. At the end of the story, they will be challenged to think about how their own daily decisions can help children like Ishara.
Ugi Time: Serve the kids ugi as one of their snacks. Ugi is a porridge that we serve to the children at the ELI school in Bukavu, DR Congo. The cup of ugi that we serve at our school is often the only meal these children eat each day. Allow your students to taste and think about what that might be like.
Crafts: For the craft one day, have the students make toys just like the kids do in Africa. They can make soccer balls out of plastic grocery bags or toy cars out of old boxes and wire hangers. This is a great way for your kids to continue to experience what it’s like to grow up as a child in Africa and to learn gratefulness for the things they have.
Ending Celebration: On the last day of the VBS, have a big drum roll before announcing the total money raised. Celebrate with the kids as you rejoice in the lives that are going to be touched because of the money God brought in. Roll the change and send a check to ELI. We would also love to get some pictures of your VBS, as well a story from the week that we can post on our website.